Consumption without child labor:
Natural stones
Natural stones can be found everywhere: as tiles in bathrooms and worktops in kitchens, as plasters on terraces and in pedestrian zones, as tombstones in cemeteries. Over a million tons of rock - granite, sand and limestone, marble or slate - are installed in Germany alone in Germany. Around 80 percent of natural stones come from India and China, the two largest natural stone producers in the world.
Child labor in quarries is one of the worst forms of child labor and in all countries in the world for children and adolescents under the age of 18. Nevertheless, in India, for example, girls and boys worked primarily in the countless illegal and not registered smaller quarries or during further processing. Such stones are sold to large companies that supply the world market.
Children beat stones in a scorching heat or crush larger blocks by hand. The risk of accidents due to falling stones, crashes or sharp and too heavy tools is very large. Children and adults breathe in stone dust that causes the deadly so -called dust flung. The life expectancy of workers in quarries in Rajasthan, Indian, is around 40 years.
Further problems in the extraction of natural stones
Even in legal quarries, compliance with basic labor rights and occupational safety in many countries are not sufficient. Again and again civil society organizations report, for example, of many accident deaths or bonds in Indian quarries. The displacement of residents or damage to their livelihood are also reported from all parts of the world, for example by deforestation or tipping stones or dusts on agricultural areas. Stone breaks sometimes destroy entire landscapes and can change the water balance of a region. The biological diversity drops. Natural stones are durable, but the transport of the stones with ships around half the world creates additional CO₂ loads. In disused quarries, living spaces for specialized species can be created.
Alternatives for consumers
The public sector is particularly in demand in the fair procurement of natural stones. Since 2009 cities and municipalities have also been able to accept social and ecological criteria in their tenders. For the paving of places or pedestrian zones, the construction of kindergartens and schools or other public buildings, cities and municipalities can include, for example, the ban on child labor and compliance with basic labor rights. But there are also alternatives for private consumers:
Fair Stone
Fair Stone certifies quarries, especially in China, Vietnam and India and continuously controls them. Natural stones lead the fair stone seal when:
- The stone importers present a guarantee declaration of their suppliers
- In the quarries and further processing companies, fundamental labor rights are observed, such as the ban on child and forced labor
- at least statutory minimum wages are paid
- Health and occupational safety measures are implemented
- The companies go through a comprehensive examination after a changeover phase
Fairstone was recognized by the state government of North Rhine-Westphalia as a certification body for tombstones. In North Rhine -Westphalia and Lower Saxony, municipalities can adapt their cemetery regulations so that only gravestones can be set up without child labor. Dealers and further information: www.fairstone.org
Xertifix
The association Xertifix is an association of campaign groups from the IG Bau and stonemasons union. The standard of Xertifix requires compliance with basic labor rights, including the ban on child labor and slavery, the payment of statutory minimum wages and health and occupational safety measures. Stone breaks and further processing companies in India, China and Vietnam are checked twice a year. Dealers and further information: www.xertifix.de
